Briggs Family—Ken, Marla, Amy (13) and Lily (8)

Our family includes Ken, Marla, Amy (13 yo.) and Lily (8 ½ yo.). We live in Knox, NY, about 17 miles sw of Albany, NY. We live in a log cabin in a rural area with our many animals, including: 2 dogs, 2 cats, 3 hermit crabs, a chameleon, a leopard gecko, a garter snake, 2 oriental fire-bellied toads and several fish. Ken works as a computer programmer and I'm primarily at home though I do work occasional part-time jobs for Audubon International and The Olde Corner Store (a small natural foods/ country store near us). I have a masters in wildlife biology and environmental studies and love being outdoors and watching nature unfold. I also love to read, garden, roller skate, and bike ride with the girls. Ken is the leader of a blues band, Nite Train, that I sing in occasionally. He also has hiked 38 of the 46 high peaks (over 4000 feet – nothing compared to out West) in NY state. He also is a huge Giant's fan and was at the playoffs this year. Ken and I grew up on the same street as kids and have been together over 30 years (and have many shared memories of our crazy childhood with wild friends).

I became certified in Secondary Biology and Chemistry, but the last thing I wrote in my teaching notebooks at the end of the process was “Homeschool!” We learned about unschooling at our first unschooling conference, the Live and Learn in MA in 2004, when Amy was 5 yo. and Lily was 1 yo. . It felt so right, it was amazing. We've been hooked ever since and have attended several Live and Learn, Northeast Unschooling, Unschoolers Rock the Campground, and Unschoolers Waterpark Gathering conferences.

Amy, our 13 yo., is a talented artist and loves animals. She is a passionate modern dancer and loves her chameleon, Zen, who is every color of the rainbow. She loves her mother's-helper job taking care of 3 children which just turned into 5 children with the addition of just-born twins! She is currently working on several steampunk projects. She loves reading, biking, trampolining, walking, yoga, and watching you-tube videos, playing video games, and watching documentaries and true crime and paranormal stories. She also plays bass guitar, just like her dad.

Lily, our 8 ½ yo., is a firecracker! She is always on the move, always involved in some project, always jumping, singing, biking, zip-lining, trampolining, narrating her life, creating stories, etc. She loves animals and helps out with a wildlife rehabilitator and is a Junior Birder at our local state park. She loves to bike all over. She enjoys playing Bioshock 2 and watching “Family Guy,”American Dad,” and “Invader Zim.” She is also a huge fan of horror movies and loves “Face Off” and “Ghost Hunters.”

We will be staying in our 1967 tincan travel trailer. Stop by and say Hi!